1

2

Lay soaked, torn cardboard in the bottom of the compost heap on top of the coffee grounds or in lieu of them. You are essentially recreating the leaf litter that epigeic or litter-dwelling worms prefer. (See References 3)

3

Add a small pile of manure, collapsed Halloween pumpkins, watermelon or cantaloupe rinds or stale bread to act as a worm magnet, recommends Barbara Pleasant and Deborah L. Martin in "The Complete Compost Gardening Guide" (see References 4). Molasses also attracts worms, writes "Dirt Doctor" Howard Garrett, who notes that you needn't collect worms or inoculate the pile with cocoons; the worms find the compost on their own (see References 5).

4

Moisten the compost heap with a spray hose. Test with a moisture meter that the moisture level reaches around 70 to 80 percent, toward the middle of the preferred 50 to 90 percent moisture range that compost worms can survive in. (See References 1, page 409)

Things You Will Need

Coffee grounds

Cardboard

Manure

Halloween pumpkins

Melon rinds

Molasses

Spray hose

Moisture meter

Compost thermometer

Warning

Avoid overloading the compost heap with "green" or nitrogen-rich materials that will heat up in the course of microbial action and scare off your worms. Limit additions of food scraps and green grass clippings. Monitor temperatures at the base of the compost heap with a long-stemmed compost thermometer and disperse or remove warm green materials before the temperature gets above 80 to 86 degrees F. (See References 1, page 409)

About the Author

Rogue Parrish has been an award-winning writer and senior editor at the "Washington Post," the "Baltimore Sun," at newspapers from England to Alaska, as well as for various online publications. She specializes in sports, fitness, travel, food and DIY topics.

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